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I caused an auto accident....no insurance...

I didn't notice the light changed as I approached the intersection, I was in the intersection before I realized what was going on - and I struck a lady turning into my lane. Now, I don't have any insurance, but according to the accident report she does. She went to the hospital in an ambulance. Everyone in my car was unharmed.

I have made a few calls and because insurance companies were getting burned by this scenario - there is no way to get insurance today that would cover the accident (I can't blame them) but that I could get insurance effective today that would take care of the no insurance portion of the ticket which is $500 which seems worth it.

I am assuming that the lady I hit, or more likely her insurance company is going to sue me. I understand that I am completely at fault, and I should have renewed my insurance, and to be honest, I feel pretty crappy about the whole thing, but especially about not having insurance to pay for her car which is more than likely totalled and the medical bills that I am sure that she is incurring right now. I am not in a position to pay these out of pocket, even though I would like to.

Any advice?

Reverend_Chaos on April 2010

“Think of me like Yoda, but instead of being little and green I wear suits and I'm awesome. I'm your bro—I'm Broda!”

Posts

Laywer up. Start making copies of your bank statements. Be prepared to demonstrate why you couldn't renew your insurance. Be prepared to try to settle with this lady's insurance for every bit of money you can actually pay.

I don't know that the insurance company is going to sue you. My understanding of how this happens is based on my being in the lady's position last year (the guy that hit me actually falsified his insurance coverage to the police after trying to lie about the accident itself) is that they are going to try to collect their damages from you.

In my situation, after my insurance company had determined that my uninsured motorist (aka hit and run) coverage applied, they paid me everything including a settlement for my pain and suffering since I was hurt. Last I spoke to them (roughly 5 months after the accident), they were still trying to find the guy at fault in the accident since he'd also given a fake address. In your situation, I think they're just going to ask you to pay for the damages they've covered. Best case scenario, they will contact you and can set up a payment plan with them. They want to get their money back, so will probably be willing to work with you.

This woman you hit could also sue you on top of this. It depends on what she wants to do - I just don't think the company will unless you refuse payment.

You are right to feel terrible for what you did. I hope you end up dealing with this for years, honestly. I hope that it will be a painful lesson so that you will never even consider exempting yourself from the requirement of having insurance to use the privilege of driving.

Get a lawyer, get your bank/employment statements in line, and maybe look into being a paid spokesman for an insurance company as to the "Why I should always have auto insurance" claim.

Another thought: If there are any traffic cameras, try to get the photos. I am not a lawyer (yet) but I reckon you want to find as many extenuating circumstances as possible to make it appear more of an accident than negligence, as I reason that this could help you in a possible civil suit.

This happened to my wife when she was a freshman in college, roughly 19 years ago. She (or, more accurately, her parents) still pay the other driver's insurance company $25 a month and I'm pretty sure they'll be doing that for the foreseeable future.

The good news is that the insurance company will probably work with you on some sort of payment plan. The bad news is that I can pretty much promise you that you will be paying them something.

I agree with A Bear's advice about paying off debts. When you get fucked over by the insurance company it will be better to have only one entity trying to get money out of you rather than several.

edit: Also, I don't know if I'd bother trying to get an insurance plan to get out of the the $500 fix-it ticket. Depending on your financial situation you may not be using a car in the near future and your premiums will be insane anyway.

And Machismo has some harsh words but as a cyclist I'm extremely fearful of being hit by an uninsured driver.

While I am not excusing what you did, I do feel for you. Some lessons are painful, this one's gonna hurt. In the interest of protecting yourself, I will second (third, fourth, whatever) the suggestion that you get your own lawyer. The retainer fee may seem like a painful upfront cost, but having legal representation on your side is worth every penny.

Spoiler:

than (thān, thən)
conj.
Used after a comparative adjective or adverb to introduce the second element or clause of an unequal comparison: She is a better athlete than I.

then (thěn)
adv.
At that time: I was still in school then. Come at noon; I'll be ready then.

Next in time, space, or order; immediately afterward: watched the late movie and then went to bed.

I wasn't really suggesting bankruptcy, just wondering if it were even a viable option in this situation. Regardless, the OP should contact a lawyer who will be much better than me at recommending what course of action to take.

You are right to feel terrible for what you did. I hope you end up dealing with this for years, honestly. I hope that it will be a painful lesson so that you will never even consider exempting yourself from the requirement of having insurance to use the privilege of driving.

I do hope things work out for you and the woman, however.

Sorry, but is this really necessary? Not only did you basically say "I hope you get fucked for years" but also didn't offer any useful advice.

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Because you're not supposed to be driving without insurance, and if the police find out you are driving without insurance your license gets suspended until you prove that you do have insurance (I'm guessing here, but it makes sense).

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Because you're not supposed to be driving without insurance, and if the police find out you are driving without insurance your license gets suspended until you prove that you do have insurance (I'm guessing here, but it makes sense).

Not only that, but they do have the power to impound your car until you do, and the fines are pretty hefty

Just a bit off topic but why the hell are all the republicans chucking a big shitty over the new healthcare bill saying they shouldn't be forced to buy something if there are rules like this for car insurance.

Just a bit off topic but why the hell are all the republicans chucking a big shitty over the new healthcare bill saying they shouldn't be forced to buy something if there are rules like this for car insurance.

Because "You can choose to drive"

Similarly, you can choose where you live, but that's not important. According to them, in the U S OF A there are RULES which you must ABIDE BY unless you decide not to, like in the case of healthcare.

Anyways, political ideas aside, it really is "because you can not drive"

Yeah, I live in PA, and it is DEFINITELY a PA state law that you need to have car insurance to drive a car. A friend of mine STILL has her license suspended because she was pulled over (not even an accident, just pulled over), and couldn't show proof of insurance. She hasn't done anything about it and has been driving for about two years like that anyway, but she's fucking crazy and if she gets pulled over again she will be in very big trouble.

I believe it's not the law in all states, but if your state is like PA then you're very lucky if you still have your license.

No wonder I want to wrap you up and take you home
I'm looking forward to the chance to meet again, but then again it all depends
Suddenly I'm not so sure that intentions can be pure
If I could just throw all my doubts into the wind I think that they'd come back again

Just a bit off topic but why the hell are all the republicans chucking a big shitty over the new healthcare bill saying they shouldn't be forced to buy something if there are rules like this for car insurance.

Because you are given the choice of not owning a car. This tangent is probably best discussed in a different forum, but its a Constitutional argument over powers. Specifically, the Tenth Amendment. The Constitution reserves all rights for the states that aren't specifically provided to the Federal Government in the Constitution. The Federal Government has gotten around this in the past by saying many laws fall under the Interstate Commerce Clause of the Constitution, which says the Federal Government has the right to make laws regulating Interstate Commerce. The Democrats say it falls under the Interstate Commerce Clause, The Republicans say it doesn't and is unconstitutional.

Just a bit off topic but why the hell are all the republicans chucking a big shitty over the new healthcare bill saying they shouldn't be forced to buy something if there are rules like this for car insurance.

It's gets even funnier when you realize that the individual mandate was a republican idea back in 1994. They were for it before they were against it! Flip-floppers! Warglegargle!!!!

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Because you're not supposed to be driving without insurance, and if the police find out you are driving without insurance your license gets suspended until you prove that you do have insurance (I'm guessing here, but it makes sense).

Lies, In Wisconsin auto insurance is not required, although after june 1st of this year you either have to have insurance, or proof that you can afford not to have insurance

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Because you're not supposed to be driving without insurance, and if the police find out you are driving without insurance your license gets suspended until you prove that you do have insurance (I'm guessing here, but it makes sense).

Lies, In Wisconsin auto insurance is not required, although after june 1st of this year you either have to have insurance, or proof that you can afford not to have insurance

Hah. What is proof that you can afford not to have insurance? A bank statement showing $5m in your checking account?

Get a bike. You're going to have your license revoked if this makes it to the authorities.

Everyone else: Learn from Reverend Chaos's mistakes. Driving (or flying anything other then a rookie ship) without insurance isn't just a bad idea, it's also illegal. In some states it's an automatic admission of fault.

Why would his license be revoked? Wouldn't it be recorded as a regular traffic infringement causing an accident and he would lose points? Its seems pretty silly if they have special conditions like if you are uninsured and you cause an accident that harms someone you lose your license as opposed to being insured.

Because you're not supposed to be driving without insurance, and if the police find out you are driving without insurance your license gets suspended until you prove that you do have insurance (I'm guessing here, but it makes sense).

Lies, In Wisconsin auto insurance is not required, although after june 1st of this year you either have to have insurance, or proof that you can afford not to have insurance

Hah. What is proof that you can afford not to have insurance? A bank statement showing $5m in your checking account?

Basically, yeah. So insurance is required for us plebs, but it's not a true blanket statement saying it's legally required everywhere

So my Fiance' and I did some further research on state laws, I live in Washington state btw - and depending on the insurance company I can possibly work out a payment plan without getting sued. Just depends on how much she/they want and if I can afford to pay them what they want monthly.

I can and probably will lose my license temporarily, but that will likely take months for the beauracrats to get through the paperwork but it seems pretty much automatic in my case. Getting pulled over while on this kind of suspension would probably mean getting arrested - so not an option. I can get a permit to drive to and from work & take family to the doctor, if I file some papers and pay a $100 fee.

If I get sued and can't pay the judgement, the state can suspend my license (again if I have gotten reinstated). If that is the only reason that my license is suspended, and I filed bankruptcy the state has to give me my license back. A judgement against me for this would be something that could be taken care of with bankruptcy but the ticket which is $751 could not. So the state makes sure that it gets it's money, but that's it. I am still waiting to hear from the Insurance company. Talking to a lawyer seems to be the best option. Thanks to everyone that offered ideas, I really do appreciate it.

I did admit guilt to the cops - there were numerous witnesses that told the cops that I ran the light and gave statements so there was no way of denying my guilt - which I was not inclined to do anyway. I still feel terrible, it was truly an accident, I wasn't trying to make the light or anything, but not having the insurance was a terrible oversight on my part. I hope that any of you who don't have insurance will take a cue from my mistake and get some - Depending on your driving record it can be a little pricey but it's better than having a large corporation after you for tens of thousands of dollars. I had a good policy last year, but things got tight and I was falling behind on other bills, and since I have been driving for 14 years or so without an accident, I figured it was the thing to get rid of for a while, instead of downgrading it. I am a really good driver, and have avoided a few accidents because I am paying attention to what's going on around me, when someone else does something without looking. I still don't know how I missed the light change.

“Think of me like Yoda, but instead of being little and green I wear suits and I'm awesome. I'm your bro—I'm Broda!”

You should probably still get a lawyer--based on your statement about admitting guilt you're not to savvy about this sort of thing. Just because you feel guilty doesn't mean you have to agree to the first number the insurance company throws at you.

Incidentally, don't ever admit guilt. There is absolutely no situation where it is in your benefit to do so. Best case, you actually were guilty of whatever you admitted to. Worst case, I'm guessing you don't have the Washington State civil code memorized and you have no idea what you were or were not actually guilty for. If you don't admit guilt you're at least in a better position to plead out some of the charges later--an admission of guilt at the scene doesn't mean you can't plead otherwise later, but you made things harder on yourself.